archive
For Choreographer 'Pina,' A Dance Tribute In 3-D
February 23, 2012 Director Wim Wenders' documentary tribute to German choreographer Pina Bausch is nominated for an Academy Award. When Wenders and Bausch met more than 20 years ago, they started planning a film that would capture her unique style of modern dance. Bausch died suddenly just days before filming started.
Underdog Football Team Shines In 'Undefeated'
February 22, 2012 In 2009, volunteer coach Bill Courtney led Manassas High School's struggling team to the playoffs. Filmmakers Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin chronicle the challenges of the Memphis team — on and off the field — in the Oscar-nominated documentary Undefeated.
'If A Tree Falls': The Earth Liberation Front's Rise
February 21, 2012 In the documentary If a Tree Falls, director Marshall Curry tells the story of the rise and fall of the Earth Liberation Front, a radical environmentalist group that the FBI once described as America's No. 1 domestic terrorism threat. The film was nominated for an Academy Award.
One Marine's Journey To 'Hell And Back Again'
February 20, 2012 Photojournalist Danfung Dennis embedded with the U.S. Marines in Afghanistan. His documentary, Hell and Back Again, has been nominated for an Academy Award. The film follows Sgt. Nathan Harris, who is wounded in battle and struggles to transition back into civilian life.
Freedom Not 'Paradise' For 'West Memphis Three'
January 18, 2012 In 1994, three teens were convicted of the murder of three boys in West Memphis, Ark. The trial drew national attention, due in part to the HBO documentary series Paradise Lost. The "West Memphis Three" appealed their convictions and were released from prison in August 2011.
Sparks Fly Over 'Gasland' Drilling Documentary
February 24, 2011 After being asked to lease his land for drilling by the booming natural gas industry, filmmaker Josh Fox took a cross-country road trip to document the environmental impact of gas drilling on local communities.
Why 'Waiting For Superman' Didn't Get An Oscar Nod
February 23, 2011 Restrepo, Inside Job, Waste Land, Exit Through the Gift Shop and Gasland are up for Oscars. But some early favorites, like Davis Guggenheim's Waiting for Superman, were left off the list. Bob Mondello, NPR's arts critic, talks about what academy members look for in the nominees for Best Documentary.
Oscars 2011: The 83rd Annual Academy Awards
Banksy's 'Exit' Reveals Street Art Secrets ... Sort Of
February 22, 2011 In Exit Through the Gift Shop, reclusive street artist Banksy tells the story of Thierry Guetta, a videographer who sets out to capture the world of street art. Through a series of unlikely events, Guetta becomes the subject — and a street artist, himself.
Recyclers Turn Rio 'Waste Land' Into High Art
February 21, 2011 Waste Land tells the story of workers at Brazil's largest garbage dump, who wade through tons of garbage daily looking for recyclable scraps to sell. Director Lucy Walker documented the pickers and artist Vik Muniz, who turned the landfill into the canvas for beautiful art projects made of trash.
Filmmaker Sees 'Inside Job' In Wall Street Crash
February 17, 2011 The 2008 financial meltdown cost millions of Americans their jobs and their homes, and left many looking for someone to blame. In his documentary Inside Job, filmmaker Charles Ferguson points the finger squarely at a financial industry that he says corrupted government and academia to rake in enormous profits.
'Restrepo': A Soldier's-Eye View From Afghanistan
February 16, 2011 Restrepo chronicles the deployment of 15 soldiers into Afghanistan's Korengal Valley, considered one of the military's most dangerous postings. Co-directors Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington made the film to capture the lives of the men and women fighting America's wars.
'Burma VJ': Documenting The Saffron Revolution
March 3, 2010 An anonymous group risked imprisonment and possible torture to smuggle footage out of Myanmar for the world to see. Director Anders Ostergaard pieced the footage together to create his Oscar-nominated documentary, Burma VJ.
Kids Hop Trains To Border In 'Which Way Home'
February 25, 2010 Rebecca Cammisa has been nominated for an Academy Award for her film, Which Way Home The documentary follows Central American migrants on a dangerous journey, on the top of a freight train, through Mexico to the U.S. border.
Dolphins Clandestinely Killed In 'The Cove'
February 24, 2010 Every year, thousands of dolphins are secretly killed in the Japanese fishing town of Taiji. National Geographic photographer-turned-filmmaker Louie Psihoyos and a covert team documented the slaughter for the film, The Cove.
'Food, Inc.' Director Robert Kenner
February 23, 2010 How much do we really know about the food we buy at the grocery store? Filmmaker Robert Kenner talks about his documentary, Food, Inc., which is up for an Oscar. The film raises questions about the safety of our food.
